辩证论治是中医学基本特点，而“证”是中医学理论和临床治疗的核心，针对证实质研究 一直是中医研究的重点难点。申请人近年聚焦胰腺癌中医证候研究取得系列原创性成绩：1、 系统构建“证”相关胰腺癌微环境特征，证实肿瘤微环境可作为胰腺癌中医证候的物质基础。 2、在传统“中药-肿瘤”直接作用模式基础上，提出“中药-微环境-肿瘤”间接作用模式，为发展胰腺癌中西医结合治疗奠定理论基础。相关研究已经发表在Gastroenterology、Oncogene、Carcinogenesis、Brit J Cancer、Pancreas、eCAM等。本研究中，我们将继续证实 ，胰腺癌不同中医证候、炎症微环境、肿瘤细胞恶性表型三者之间存在一致性，针对证的治疗 ，是否可转化为炎症微环境改变及肿瘤恶性生物学行为变化。本研究假设的提出和论证，对于从分子水平探明胰腺癌中医证候的物质基础、发展中医证候理论具有重要价值。

Syndrome differentiation and treatment is the character of traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) theory. ZHENG, also known as syndrome, is the essence of TCM theory and clinical treatment. ZHENG study has been remaining one the most important research topics in TCM. During the past years I have focused my studies on TCM ZHENG associated with pancreatic cancer and have gained a lot of novel findings. Firstly, we identified the ZHENG associated microenvironment characters in human pancreatic cancer and confirmed that the tumor microenvironment may serve as the molecular basis of TCM ZHENG in pancreatic cancer. Secondly we discovered that Chinese herbal medicine could target tumor microenvironment which contributed to its anti-tumor effects on pancreatic cancer cells. All these findings been published in Gastroenterology, Oncogene, Carcinogenesis, Brit J Cancer, Pancreas, eCAM, etc. In this study we will try to confirm that the TCM ZHENG is consistent with tumor inflammatory environment and the malignant phenotype of pancreatic cancer cells. Targeting TCM ZHENG may translate to the alteration of tumor inflammatory microenvironment and malignant phenotype. Therefore, our study would unveil the nature of TCM ZHENG in pancreatic cancer, which may finally advance the theory of TCM ZHENG.